The Viking Age and the Crusades Era in Yngvars Saga Víðförla

THE VIKING AGE AND THE CRUSADES ERA IN YNGVARS SAGA VFRLA

GALINA GLAZYRINA

THE VIKING AGE: THE ORIGIN OF YNGVAR'S TALE. It is a rare and happy event in the early history of Sweden, which is otherwise not well

documented, that the expedition led by Yngvar was recorded in two different types of

medieval source. About twenty-five rune-stones, located in Central Sweden close to Lake

Mlar, were erected in the mid-eleventh century to commemorate the deceased participants in

the expedition, one of the last Viking Age expeditions to the east. Short, formulaic phrases

carved on the stones name more than 20 warriors who went with Yngvar. That these stones are

so numerous testifies that it was a large-scale and well-organized venture.

Yngvars saga vfrla1, written in Iceland about a century and half after the stones were

raised, is largely devoted to a voyage which Yngvar Akason, a Swedish nobleman, undertook

with a fleet of 30 fully manned ships. The saga does not abound in details. Not many of those

who took part are named, only Yngvar's closest companions. The place-names mentioned in

the saga are not sufficient to give an indication of Yngvar's exact route, but it is certain that he

came to Rus' and left it after three years. We do not know his final destination. The

chronology of the event, on the other hand, is well documented: the date of the hero's death

mentioned in the text (1041 in AM 343 a 4to, 1040 in GKS 2845 4to)2 leads one to the

conclusion that Yngvar's expedition started from Sweden in the late 1030s. The dating of the

saga correlates with that suggested by the rune-stones.

The sources allow us to reconstruct the way in which a narrative about Yngvar's travel may

have originated and developed in oral transmission, as well as to see what its original form

may have been.

It seems most probable that the first oral stories about Yngvar's men were composed in

Sweden in the middle of the eleventh century. Once the news of a disaster to the expedition

reached the country, it quickly spread around the area from where the ships' crews had been

recruited. The news was transmitted from one house to another and was much discussed. The

families which lost their men fathers, sons or husbands presented their stories in a slightly

Sagas & Societies: Galina Glazyrina 2

different way from their neighbours: they praised the courage and grieved over the death of

their lost relatives, glorifying them as is customary in such tales. Each time a new rune-stone

was erected in the vicinity of Lake Mlar, interest in the expedition intensified; new details,

both real and invented, were brought to life and added to what had been told earlier. As time

passed, the agitation about the shocking news calmed down. Details of personal tragedies

faded, and not even the names of the participants of the expedition were remembered. The

personages of the YS are not the Swedes mentioned on the rune-stones. They are Ketill (an

Icelander), Hjlmvgi (possibly a German3), Valdimarr (who seems to have been a Russian4),

and Soti (whose home country is not specified; it is probable that he was a Swede5); all are

from different countries, forming a sort of international team.

There were, however, some details common to all the stories. The name of the leader of the

expedition Yngvar must have been repeated every time the tragedy was recounted. There

must also have been a general consensus about the direction of the route: it is mentioned in

quite a number of runic inscriptions that the warriors went to the east6. Some stories might

also have shared detailed descriptions of the most notable or most amusing episodes of the

journey, in which both the warriors and their leader Yngvar showed great prowess in fighting

the enemy or nature. It is problematic, however, whether the destination of the expedition

could have become a general feature: Yngvar's men did not all fall in the same battle at the

same place which could be remembered. It is most likely that the stories named different

places where participants of the expedition died, so that the name of the actual place where

Yngvar's journey ended was lost.

The narrative elements often repeated in family or local stories gradually became more

important. They survived and formed a general outline of an Yngvar's tale which became part

of the popular repertoire of story-tellers.

The saga itself states that it was told at the royal court in Sweden and from there came to

Iceland. It says: "En Isleifur sagdizt heyrt hafa Yngvars sogu af einum kaup[manni], enn sa

kuezt hafa numit hana j hird Suiakongs"7. The storyteller from whom the merchant borrowed

the tale may have been one of the king's warriors. The tale may also have been performed by a

professional storyteller (or saga-teller) whose regular task was to entertain the king and his

distinguished guests.


YNGVAR'S TALE IN ORAL TRANSMISSION. When talking about the oral transmission of medieval narrative, one has to rely upon the

practice of performing living modern epics. Professional narrators of folk tales very seldom

commit the whole of the story to memory. The majority of them memorized only a general

outline of it. During the performance the story was ornamented with details borrowed from a

certain artistic "creative fund" which each narrator possessed. The fund consisted of a limited

number of ready-made scenes, short stories and descriptions or details, with which the narrator

could improvise and which he could combine at will with the plot of a story. A good narrator

a professional was distinguished by the variety of subordinate elements he kept in his

memory8.

Applied to oral story transmission, this theory allows us to presume that a storyteller did not

always know and did not have to remember all the details of the narratives in his repertoire. In

his oral presentation the storyteller followed the general outline of the narrative, but its

detailed arrangement depended both on the storyteller's background knowledge and on his

choice of certain elements from his "creative fund". It also depended on the genre of his work

and on his audience.

The story-teller who chose to include Yngvar's tale in his repertoire be he a Swede or an

Icelander was free to expand the narrative within the confines of the subject which dealt with

the travels of Scandinavians to the east. Quite common in this context were stories about

northerners at the court of Yaroslav the Wise, whose policy of attracting them to his service

was widely known. If the tale did not mention Yngvar's stay in Rus', the story-teller could

easily let Yngvar spend three years there9. If the story-teller was not aware of Yngvar's exact

heroic deeds, he could use some amusing "military anecdotes" brought by the Varangians

from Byzantium (similar to those in Eymundar ttr and Haralds saga Sigurarsonar), and

add them to the tale of Yngvar10; from travellers stories told by merchants or warriors who

went down or up the Dnieper he might have added a description of the great cataracts on that

river11, etc. It seems that the storyteller was free to choose any appropriate episode from his

"creative fund" for his performance, and give his own interpretation of it.

What the saga-teller was not free to misinterpret, in order to get a favourable reaction from the

audience, was the flavour of the event he was describing. In the case of Yngvar's tale we can

sense this in one versified runic inscription which explains why the fallen participants of the

expedition were praised by their relatives and other contemporaries (who were the audience of


the early storyteller of Yngvar's exploits) as brave warriors who, like many other Vikings

before them, sought wealth and fame in distant lands:

They fared like drngiaR

far after gold,

and in the east

gave the eagle food.12

Thus it seems most probable that at the earlier stage of its oral transmission, Yngvar's tale was

a typical story about a brave Viking called Yngvar who led a large expedition from Sweden to

the east, visited Gararki, passed safely over the river cataracts, triumphed skilfully in battles,

and in the end tragically perished in some distant land with many of those men who followed

him. The tale was created at the very end of the Viking Age. It was meant for people who still

remembered the Viking Age and appreciated its ideals and heroes.

An Yngvar's tale of this kind was brought from Sweden to Iceland. Performed in different

parts of the country by different saga-tellers, it circulated in several oral versions: "essa sogu

segizt Oddr munkr heyrt hafa segia ann prest, er Isleifur hiet, ok annann Glum orgeirsson,

ok hinn ridi hefer orer heitit"13. Before it was written down as part of the YS it was told by

at least two generations of Icelanders: "Glumur hafdi numit [sogu] af fodur sinum"14. Each

storyteller might have contributed to the tale by adding details, creating new episodes, and

changing the interpretation of the events he recounted. The author of the YS seems to want to

specify that for his written saga he used the tale which had been compiled by Oddr Snorrason,

who combined several versions of the tale: "Af eira frasaugn hafdi hann at, er honum otti

merkiligazt"15.

"YNGVARS SAGA VFRLA" OF THE TIME OF THE CRUSADES. The written YS clearly demonstrates that its author was interested not only in the heroic

exploits of his heroes. More than that, the idea which he gradually displays in his work had

nothing to do with the ideals of the Scandinavian Viking Age. The new subject which he

introduced to Yngvar's tale is Christianity in its strong opposition to heathenism. It appears

that Yngvar's tale alone did not provide the author with an opportunity to expand on this new

aspect. A continuation of the whole narrative was needed, and therefore the final part of the

saga a story about Svein, Yngvar's son, and his mission was attached to the basic narrative.


The new subject shows itself in the first episodes of Yngvar's journey. Soon after Yngvar left

the Russia of King Yaroslav he came into the realm of Queen Silkisif. In spite of a friendly

reception by the queen, Yngvar ordered his people that they should not have any contact with

the citizens of Citopolis so that none of his mates would be affected by heathen beliefs and

take part in heathen practices. Also, it was particularly forbidden to have contact with heathen

women. The prohibition was so severe that Yngvar ordered that several men who disobeyed

him be put to death.

The Swedes reacted in the same way when they came to the city of Hieliopolis, the ruler of

which invited them to spend the winter there. What attracted the attention of the Swedes was

that the streets of the city bore many signs of heathen sacrifice. Thus "Yngvar urged his men

to pray earnestly and hold fast to their faith"16. This time Yngvar guarded his people better,

and none of them "defiled himself by having affairs with women or any other kind of heathen

practice"17.

The episodes of wintering in the cities of the heathen in Citopolis and Heliopolis are

structurally similar, as shown in the table below.

Wintering in Citopolis Wintering in Heliopolis

The ruler of the city distinguishes himself (herself) from the rest of his (her) people

Queen Silkisif stands out from other women by her clothes and her beauty

On a ship which approaches Yngvar's fleet there is a man a man named Jolf whose clothing sets him apart from his companions

The languages the ruler speaks

Silkisif asks Yngvar questions in many languages

Jolf speaks in several languages

Invitation for wintering in the city

The queen invites Yngvar and his people to

her city, where they spend a whole winter

Jolf invites Yngvar to winter in his city, and insists on their accepting his invitation


Citizens pull the travellers' boats out of the harbour

"...the townsmen lifted their ships ashore,

rigging and all, and carried them up to the

city walls"18

"...they saw the townsmen carrying their

ships on their backs right up to the city,

where they could be kept under lock and

key"19

Signs of heathen ritual in the city

"...there was evidence everywhere of pagan

customs"20

"In every street they saw many signs of

heathenism"21

Yngvar and his people live separately from the citizens

"Yngvar fitted out a great hall to stay in

with all his men, but since there was

evidence everywhere of pagan customs, he

locked it securely"22

"Jolf gave them a hall... They would take

their weapons whenever they had to leave

the hall, and kept it locked while they were

away. No one from the city was allowed

inside apart from King Jolf"23

Yngvar forbids his men to have contacts with the heathen

"[Yngvar] forbade his men to mix with the

heathen or allow any women into the hall

apart from the queen. Some of his men paid

little heed to his orders,but he had them put

to death and after that no one dared to

disobey him"24

"...Yngvar urged his men to pray earnestly

and hold fast to their faith...Yngvar kept

such a close eye on his men that winter, not

one of them defiled himself by having

affairs with women or any other kind of

heathen practice"25

Yngvar and the ruler of the city spend their time talking to each other

"Yngvar spent a very enjoyable winter

there, for every day the queen and her wise

men would sit talking with him, exchanging

all kinds of information"26

"...he [Jolf] used to sit there [in the hall]

every day talking to Yngvar, each telling the

other things old and new about their own

countries"27


The text in the original reveals the similarity of the episodes, not only in their structure but

also in their wording. For example, heathen practice in the cities and the measures undertaken

by Yngvar to protect his men are described as follows:

In Citopolis:

Ynguar bio eina haull aullu lidi sinu ok lugti hana uannliga, uiat fullt uar af blotskap allt umhuertis. Ynguar bad a uid uarazt allt samneyti heidinna manna, ok ollum konum bannadi hann at koma j sina haull utan drottningu. Nockurer menn gafu litinn gaum at hans mali, ok liet hann a drepa; ok sidan treystizt engi at briota at, er hann baud.28

[Yngvar fitted out a great hall to stay in with all his men, but since there was evidence everywhere of pagan customs, he locked it securely, and forbade his men to mix with the heathen or allow any women into the hall apart from the queen. Some of his men paid little heed to his orders, but he had them put to death and after that no one dared to disobey him (VR, 52-53).]

In Heliopolis:

ar sau eir um aull strti micinn blotskap. Ynguar bad sina menn uera bnrkna ok trufasta. Eina haull gaf Julfur eim, ok ann uetur geymdi Ynguar suo sina menn, at engi spilltizt af kuenna uildskiptum edur audrum heidnum domi. En a er eir foru naudsynia sinna, gengu eir aluopnader ok lstu haullina a medan. Engi madur skylldi ar inn koma nema kongr.29

[In every street they saw many signs of heathenism, so Yngvar urged his men to pray earnestly and hold fast to their faith. Jolf gave them a hall and Yngvar kept such a close eye on his men that winter, not one of them defiled himself by having affairs with women or any other kind of heathen practice. They would take their weapons whenever they had to leave the hall, and kept it locked while they were away. No one from the city was allowed inside apart from King Jolf... (VR, 53-54).]

Thus both the wording and the ideas expressed in the two episodes of wintering in the cities of

the heathen are almost identical, and testify to the literary rather than the folkloric character of

the text. Their recurrence in the text signifies that they are semantically loaded. The reader

understands that the difference between the Swedes and the people they met on their route is

not ethnic or cultural. The author does not seem to be interested in the nationality of his heroes

or their way of life, but he pays special attention to the beliefs of the people they come in

contact with. Christian faith is the feature that differentiates Yngvar's people from the others.

This opposition, shown in the first two encounters with the human (as opposed to beasts and

monsters), becomes a dominant motif in the saga.


From its first appearance in the text, the term "heathen" (heiinn) becomes the norm as the

narrative proceeds. It is used in the saga on 22 occasions to define all the human or human-like

antagonists of Yngvar and Svein. No matter how far they travel and how many different

peoples they meet on the way, the label the author places upon them is the same: all of them

are called "the heathen".

In some scenes the term appears quite unexpectedly. Once Svein and his men went ashore to

trade with the natives. They made a bargain to purchase some fur from the natives, but a man

from Russia tried to break their agreement. The seller got angry and punched the Russian on

his nose. The Russian "drew his sword and sliced the heathen in two"30. There occurs a sudden

shift of standpoint, as a result of which the traders which have just been called "the natives" in

the previous narration acquire a different name and become "the heathen". Though Svein's

men didn't seem to be involved in the quarrel, when Svein saw that the heathen had gathered

an army he told his men to arm and start fighting.

In the fierce battle that followed the heathen, having no protective armour, fell in huge numbers. When they saw that they had lost the battle, the heathen ran, and Svein and his men won a great deal of plunder left behind by the others.31

In the author's presentation a local conflict between indigenous people and visitors turns into a

battle in which Christians defeated heathen.

We find a similar transformation of the enemy in Yngvar's part of the saga. Before Yngvar and

his men left Heliopolis, Jolf warned them that further along on their route there were groups of

pirates who decorated their ships in such a manner that they looked like "floating islands".

When the Swedes approached the pirates they understood that the pirates were equipped with

a kind of weapon which Yngvar and his people had never seen before. Namely copper tubes

throwing out fire which burnt everything around, both people and ships. The weapon

described in the saga has been identified by scholars as Greek fire (also called "fluid fire")

which was in the possession of the Imperial Byzantine Army. It is known from historical

sources that Greek fire was used only in case of emergency, once other means had been

exhausted. The method of its production was kept secret by the Byzantines, and in the Middle

Ages the use of Greek fire was a Byzantine prerogative. It is quite peculiar that in the saga it is

believed to be a weapon of the Vikings. What is most interesting about this scene is that the

term "Vikings" is suddenly replaced by the term "heathen".


The "friendenemy" opposition here becomes more complicated: people involved in the

conflict are religious antagonists. The enemy is the heathen, who are opposed to the

Christians. It is significant that later in this episode the author suggested one more definition

for Yngvar's enemies. "The Vikings" who attacked the Swedes are also called "the devil's

people", and this third definition clarifies the conflict described in the episode. Heathen

Vikings, accomplices of the devil, use a powerful weapon against Yngvar and his warriors.

This is the enemy that cannot be overcome by ordinary means. All the skills of the warriors

are useless in combat with him, and no ordinary weapon is effective. The only thing that can

help the Christians in such a battle is God's intervention and the weapon He consecrates.

Antagonists in battle should use comparable weapons, and the author of the saga shows that

Yngvar who suffered losses managed to defeat the enemy only when he used arrows which

were lit from a tinder-box with a flame consecrated by the Bishop on their departure from

Russia. It says in the saga:

He bent his bow, strung an arrow and set to its tip the tinder-box with consecrated flame. The arrow flew blazing from the string straight into the tube jutting from the furnace, and so the fire was turned against the heathen, and in the blinking of an eye the island was burned to ashes men, ships and all. Then the other islands came up, but no sooner had Yngvar heard the sound of the bellows than he began shooting the consecrated flame, and with God's help destroyed these human devils, reducing them to cinders.32

The picture created by the author is well balanced: divine flame overcoming devil's fire. Again

in this scene the author avoided ethnic definitions. The enemy is labelled by the general term

"the Vikings", and the location of the action is uncertain. What is emphasized in the episode is

a clear opposition of faiths and a strong hope for God's power. The author shows that people

who do not share the Christian faith with his heroes are hostile towards them. The Greek Fire

episode reveals a notable feature: it demonstrates a clear transformation of Yngvar's enemy.

We see how Vikings a habitual threat to peaceful travellers turn into the devil's champions

because of their beliefs. The change of terms is very significant here, as it might indicate that

there was an earlier text that was subjected to reworking. Both the Greek Fire and trading

episodes (in the latter, Svein took the place of Yngvar) could have been part of Yngvar's tale,

but it is hardly probable that their protagonists would have been labelled "the heathen".

The relationship with the devil is a feature that characterizes the enemy, and is clearly

expressed in an episode from Svein's travel. On one occasion the travellers saw a herd of pigs

on the shore and landed there to hunt the pigs. Suddenly a host of natives appeared, led by a


man who carried three apples in his hands. The man started to throw the apples into the air,

and the apples landed at the same spot right at Svein's feet. "There's some diabolical power

and weird custom behind all this"33, Svein decided. He shot an arrow at the man; it struck the

man's nose. A sound similar to the shattering of the horn attracted their attention and they saw

that the man had a beak like a bird instead of his nose. The shot made the host run away

inland. Though the author did not make it clear, we can deduce that Svein used the same sort

of arrows those with consecrated flame lit from consecrated tinders.

By using consecrated flame the travellers defeated "human devils", but not only them.

Yngvar's son Svein applies the same device against the flying dragon Jaculus. This is the

enemy whom Yngvar did not overcome. Jaculus attacked his fleet and spewed venom on the

ship which was "captained by two priests" so that "both ship and crew were annihilated"34. It

is not explained in the saga why Yngvar himself did not use arrows lit with consecrated flame

to destroy Jaculus, but because he had not done that, his son makes up for his father's blunder.

Svein... set onto his bow-string an arrow with tinder the size of a man's head on the tip, made with consecrated fire. When he saw that Jaculus was in the air flying towards the ships with its jaws gaping, he shot the arrow with the sacred fire straight into its mouth and right into its heart. The dragon crashed dead to the ground, at which Svein and his men rejoiced, praising God.35

To kill Jaculus Svein chose the largest tinder, and this means that the dragon is regarded by

Svein as a more serious enemy than the heathen. It is worth noting that in medieval

iconography the flying dragon symbolizes Satan, and this might be an explanation for the

killing-of-Jaculus scene in the saga.

However powerful consecrated flame might be, in some situations Svein and his men thought

it was safer to inquire what had been predetermined by Divine Providence victory or loss. In

the saga there are two episodes in which the personages try to foresee their future and know

God's will.

One of the battles Svein got involved in took place soon after his fleet, which was thirty ships

strong, left Russia. The army of the heathen which attacked his men was three times stronger.

Svein and his men hesitated whether they should plunge into battle or flee from such an

overwhelming enemy. They decided to find out God's will by casting lots.

The dice told him to fight, and Svein swore to give up the viking life if God would grant them victory. Then the fight began, and Svein and his men killed the heathen at will. The outcome was that the heathen fled in twenty ships, but the rest were


killed, while Svein lost only a few men and won all the money he and his followers could have wished, in gold and all kinds of treasure.36

An easy victory was granted to Svein and his men by Providence.

In another episode it is told that Bishop Rodgeir hesitated whether he should join Svein's

expedition or not. To reach a decision he uses the same method of casting lots:

The bishop blessed some dice three times, and three times he cast them, and each time the answer was that God wished him to go. The bishop said he would do so with pleasure.37

From the saga we know that the bishop fulfilled his mission. He baptized the heathen Queen

Silkisif and the people of her country. Svein had churches built there, one of which was

consecrated in the name of Yngvar.

But in difficult situations the only weapon of the Christians was their direct appeal to God.

Once the travellers met a giant, so ugly and fearsome that they took him for "the Devil

himself".

In their great terror they prayed to God for mercy and Yngvar told Hjalmvigi, a most worthy cleric, to sing some hymns to the glory of God, and they promised six days of fasting and prayer.38

The giant left his house and walked away from it, while Yngvar's men found out the best way

to destroy both the house and the giant.

On another occasion Svein and his men went ashore for trading. After a good bargain the heathen invited their customers to a feast in a certain house, and they accepted... Svein's men sat down at table and blessed themselves, but when the heathen saw the sign of the cross they went crazy and attacked them.39

Svein told his men to get their weapons and armour and prepare for battle.

When they had formed up, they saw that the heathen had done the same, but bore a bloodstained man before them as their banner.40

This menacing sign made Svein seek advice from the bishop, who said:

If the heathen expect the corpse of some evil man to bring them victory,' said the bishop, 'let us consider it our duty to trust in the aid of Heaven, where Christ Our Lord dwells in His Mercy, the leader of the faithful and guardian of us all, both living and dead. Bear before you the victory sign of Our Christ the Crucified and call upon his name that will bring us victory, and death to the heathen.'

When the bishop had spoken these rousing words, they took the crucifix and image of Our Lord, and bore it as a banner before the army. They marched against the heathen without fear, while the priests went aside to pray, and when the two armies


met, the heathen were struck blind and many were in terror, scattering in every direction some into the river, others into fens and forests, perishing in their thousands.

After the enemy had been routed, Svein had the dead buried, and afterwards warned his men not to show any curiosity about heathen practices.41

The outcome of this battle, compared to the previous ones, is hyperbolic. Divine retribution

fell upon the heathen they went blind. But the author of the saga did not content himself with

the simple statement of this fact. His comments make the reader imagine thousands of

frightened people who had lost their sight, rushing about unable to find their way, drowning in

rivers and fens and stumbling in forests. It is worth noticing the final words in this episode:

"enn er etta var girt, bad Sveinn lid sitt ad varast ad forvitnast heidinna manna sidu"42.

They again testify that the Christian heathen opposition was a subject of particular interest

for the author of the YS.

Heathenism was always a special concern for the Christian Church. The Holy War against the

heathen was proclaimed on 27 November 1095 in the famous speech by Pope Urban II at the

Council of Clermont. The Popes actual address has not been preserved. Reports of it as parts

of larger works were made by at least five chroniclers from the twelfth century, and these

retellings differ from one another in both content and length43. The Pope made it clear that in

the Holy War that would follow, the enemy of the Christians was "an accursed race, a race

utterly alienated from God, a generation forsooth which has not directed its heart and has not

entrusted its spirit to God"44. Divine Providence was to assist warriors of Christ. "Let this then

be your war-cry in combats", said the Pope "because this word is given to you by God.

When an armed attack is made upon the enemy, let this cry be raised by all the soldiers of

God: It is the will of God! It is the will of God!"45

Within the vast variety of historical writings at the time of the crusades, such as itineraries to

Holy Places, descriptions of pilgrimages, etc., the chronicles of the crusades were the only

type of sources wholly based on the ideas expressed by Urban II and developed by his

successors. The earliest chronicles which told of the travels of warriors of Christ and pilgrims

to the Holy land and Byzantium were composed soon after the First Crusade (10961099). As

a special genre of medieval European literature, they are characterized by a combination of

features common to most of them. It is in the chronicles that we find the opposition between

Christian and heathen which is clearly expressed in the terminology used by the authors of

these works. The Christians are usually called: populus Dei (God's people), Christi milites


(Christ's warriors), peregrini (pilgrims), Christianorum populus (Christian people), etc. A

large variety of terms, repeated from text to text, are used to denote the enemies of the

Christians: gens barbara (barbarous people), iniquissimi barbari (the most vicious

barbarians), gentiles (gentiles), pagani (pagans), infideles (unbelievers, infidels), perfidi

(heretics). In some texts the naming of the enemy is emotionally coloured: inimici Domini

(enemies of the Lord), inimici Dei et sanctae Christianitatis (enemies of the Lord and Holy

Christianity), satellites Diaboli (the followers or the army of the Devil)46. It is in the

chronicles that the descriptions of battles and the idea of Providential assistance to warriors of

Christ go hand in hand.

Written chronicles, designed to commemorate events of great historical and religious

importance, did not only exist only in written form as official or semi-official documents.

They were also transmitted orally, and they performed the same function for the Crusaders as

"military anecdotes" did for the Varangians. It is not improbable that some of crusaders'

stories reached Iceland and contributed to the transformation of a Viking tale of Yngvar into

the saga of Yngvar, "a Christian missionary"47.

NOTES 1 Yngvars saga vfrla, ed. Emil Olson (Copenhagen, 1912) [hereafter YS]. ..

: , , (, 2002), 200-

249.

2 YS, 30:913. The exact dating is in contrast with the narrow personal and geographical

information contained in the text. It is quite probable that chronological references are a later

interpolation.

3 Hofmann D. Die Yngvars saga vfrla und Oddr munkr inn fri, Speculum Norrnum.

Norse Studies in memory of Gabriel Turville-Petre (Odense, 1981), 194.

4 ..

1043 ., , . XXI (, 1976), 7982;

.. . :

, , (, 2001), 5961.


5 The name is known from runic inscriptions. See: Owe J. Svenskt Runnamnregister

(Stockholm, 1933), 70.

6 Sd. 131; Sd.173; Sd. 320; Sd. 335; Up. 439; Up. 644; Up. 654; Up. 661; Up. 778 in

Sveriges runinskrifter, utg. af Kung. Vitterhets Historie och Antikvitets Akademien

(Stockholm, 1900 ff.).

7 YS, 49:710.

8 .. . (,

1997), 6877. The author summarises the results of the research conducted by specialists from

different countries in the field of modern living epics in the Russian North, Finland,

Yugoslavia, Middle Asia, the Caucasus and other regions.

9 YS, 12:15.

10 YS, 19:1520:14; 20:2021:18; 25:926:9.

11 YS, 19:115

12 Sd. 179. Translated into English by Omeljan Pritsak in: Pritsak O. The Origine of Rus'.

Vol. I. Old Scandinavian Sources other than the Sagas. (Cambridge, Mass., 1981), 459.

13 YS, 49:36.

14 YS, 49:10.

15 YS, 49:67.

16 Vikings in Russia. Yngvar's Saga and Eymund's Saga. Translated and Introduced by

Hermann Plsson and Paul Edwards (Edinburgh University Press, 1989), 53 [hereafter VR].

17 VR, 5354.

18 VR, 52.

19 VR, 53.

20 VR, 52.

21 VR, 53.

22 VR, 5253.

23 VR, 5354.


24 VR, 53.

25 VR, 5354.

26 VR, 53.

27 VR, 54.

28 YS, 15:2216:6.

29 YS, 17:1623.

30 VR, 62.

31 VR, 62.

32 VR, 56.

33 VR, 62.

34 VR, 52.

35 VR, 65.

36 VR, 61.

37 VR, 61.

38 VR, 55.

39 VR, 63.

40 VR, 64.

41 VR, 64.

42 YS, 41:1719.

43 The English translation of the four versions is published in: The First Crusade. The

Chronicle of Fulcher of Chartres and Other Source Materials, ed., with an Introduction by

Edward Peters (University of Pennsylvania Press, Philadelphia, 1971), 215, 2731 [hereafter

The First Crusade].

44 The First Crusade, 2.

45 The First Crusade, 4.


46 .. : (,

2001), 4069.

47 VR, 3.

WORKS CITED

The First Crusade. The Chronicle of Fulcher of Chartres and Other Source Materials, ed.,

with an Introduction by Edward Peters (University of Pennsylvania Press,

Philadelphia, 1971).

Hofmann D. Die Yngvars saga vfrla und Oddr munkr inn fri, Speculum Norrnum.

Norse Studies in memory of Gabriel Turville-Petre (Odense, 1981), 188222.

Owe J. Svenskt Runnamnregister (Stockholm, 1933).

Pritsak O. The Origine of Rus'. Vol. I. Old Scandinavian Sources other than the Sagas.

(Cambridge, Mass., 1981).

Sveriges runinskrifter, utg. af Kung. Vitterhets Historie och Antikvitets Akademien

(Stockholm, 1900 ff.).

Vikings in Russia. Yngvar's Saga and Eymund's Saga. Translated and Introduced by Hermann

Plsson and Paul Edwards (Edinburgh University Press, 1989).

Yngvars saga vfrla, ed. Emil Olson (Copenhagen, 1912).

.. : , ,

(, 2002).

.. : (,

2001).

..

1043 ., , . XXI (, 1976), 74

88.


.. . :

, , (, 2001).

.. . (,

1997).

Wintering in Heliopolis

The Viking Age and the Crusades Era in Yngvars Saga Víðförla

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